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Steve Nash
Steven John Nash (born Febuary 7,1974) is a South African / Canadaian professional basketball player at Point Guard for the Los Angeles Lakers of the NBA. Nash, who was born in South Africa but grew up in Canada, enjoyed a successful high-school basketball career, and he was eventually given a scholarship by Santa Clara University. In his four seasons with the Broncos, the team made three NCAA Tournament appearances, and Nash was twice named the West Coast Conference Player of the Year. Hi After graduating from Santa Clara as the team's all-time leader in assists, he entered the 1996 NBA Draft and was selected as the 15th pick by the Phoenix Suns. He made a minimal impact, and was traded to the Dallas Mavericks in 1998. By his third season with the Mavericks, he was voted into his first NBA All-Star Game and had earned his first All-NBA selection. Together with Dirk Nowitzki and Michael Finley, Nash led the Mavericks to the Western Conference Finals the following season. However, he became a free agent after the 2003–04 season and returned to the Phoenix Suns. In the 2004–05 season, Nash led the Suns to the Western Conference Finals, and was named the league's Most Valuable Player (MVP). He was named MVP again in the 2005–06 season, and missed out on a third consecutive MVP title to Nowitzki the next season. Named by ESPN in 2006 as the ninth greatest point guard of all time, Nash has led the league in assists and free-throw percentage at various points in his career, although he has occasionally been criticized for his poor defence. He is also ranked as one of the top players in league history for three-point shooting, free-throw shooting, total assists and assists per game. Nash, who is married, is involved in charity and humanitarian work, and he is also interested in soccer and film-making. In 2006, ''Time'' named him as one of the 100 most influential people in the world. On 28 December 2007 it was announced that Nash would receive Canada's highest civilian honour, the Order Of Canada,Suns notebook: Nash receives Order of Canada, eastvalleytribune.com, accessed 30 December 2007. and on 3 June 2008, it was announced that Nash would receive a star on Canada's Walk of Fame.Steve Nash, kd lang among new Walk of Fame inductees, ctv.ca, 3 June 2008, accessed 3 June 2008. Early life Stephen Nash was born in Johannesburg, South Africa to a Welsh mother and English father on 7 February 1974. His family moved to Regina, Saskatchewan, when he was 18 months old, and then again to Vancouver, before finally settling in Victoria, British Columbia.Steve Nash, jockbio.com, accessed 6 March 2008. Although Nash played in soccer and ice hockey, he did not start playing basketball until he was 12 or 13. However, in eighth grade, he told his mother that one day he would play in the NBA and become a star. Nash originally attended Mount Douglas Secondary School, but after his grades began to drop, his parents decided to enroll him at St. Michaels University School, a private boarding school. At St. Michaels, he starred in basketball, soccer, and rugby union. While playing basketball during his senior season, Nash almost averaged a triple-double with 21.3 points, 11.2 assists, and 9.1 rebounds per game.Steve Nash Bio Page, nba.com, accessed 8 January 2008. In the 1991–92 season, he led his team in his final year to the British Columbia AAA provincial championship title, and was named the province's player of the year.Hyde-Lay, Ian, Steve Nash - NBA MVP, smus.bc.ca, accessed 24 July 2007. College career Although Nash's high school coach, Ian Hyde-Lay, sent letters of inquiry and highlight reels on Nash's behalf to over 30 American universities, Nash was not recruited by any university, until Santa Clara University head coach Dick Davey requested video footage of the young guard. After watching Nash in person, Davey said he "was nervous as hell just hoping that no one else would see him. It didn't take a Nobel Prize winner to figure out this guy's pretty good. It was just a case of hoping that none of the big names came around." However, Davey told Nash that Nash was "the worst defensive player" he had ever seen. Nash was awarded a scholarship by Santa Clara for the 1992–93 season. At that time, it had been five years since the Broncos appeared in the NCAA tournament. That changed when Nash led the Broncos to a West Coast Conference (WCC) title and an upset win over the No. 2 seeded Arizona Wildcats in the first round of the 1993 NCAA Men's Division I Basketball Tournament. In that game, Nash scored six straight free throws in the last 30 seconds of the contest. Although Santa Clara was defeated by Temple University in the next round, the 1992–93 campaign was considered a successful one. However, the Broncos failed to sustain the momentum the following season, and only managed a 5–7 record in the conference. The team rebounded in 1994–95, with Nash being named Conference Player of the Year and the Broncos topping the WCC. Featuring the league leader for scoring and assists in Nash, the Broncos returned to the NCAA tournament, but they were defeated by Mississippi State University. After the season, Nash contemplated turning professional, but decided against it when he learned that he would probably not be considered a first-round pick in the 1995 NBA Draft. In the 1995–96 season, Nash began attracting the attention of the national media and professional scouts. He had spent the summer before that honing his skills, playing with the national team and working out with the likes of established NBA players Jason Kidd and Gary Payton. Santa Clara again captured the WCC title, and for the second consecutive year, Nash was named Conference Player of the Year, the first Bronco to do so since Kurt Rambis. The Broncos were eliminated by Kansas University in the NCAA tournament, but Nash's performances ensured that he was named Honorable Mention All-America as a senior by The Associated Press and the USBWA. He also finished his career as Santa Clara's all-time leader in career assists (510), free-throw percentage (.862), and made and attempted three-pointers (263–656). He remains third on the school's all-time scoring list (1,689), and holds Santa Clara's single-season free-throw percentage record (.894). In September 2006, Nash had his jersey (#11) retired, becoming the first Santa Clara student-athlete to receive that honour.Former SCU Basketball Star Steve Nash Honored by Alma Mater, scu.edu, 18 September 2006, accessed 16 October 2007. NBA career First stint in Phoenix After graduating with a degree in sociology, Nash was selected 15th overall by the Phoenix Suns in the first round of the 1996 NBA Draft. Upon hearing the draft announcement, Suns fans booed in disapproval of the relatively unknown player. This was because despite his impressive college accomplishments, Nash had not played in one of the major college conferences. During his first two seasons in the NBA, Nash played a supporting role behind NBA star point guards Kevin Johnson, Sam Cassell, and later, Jason Kidd. In his rookie season, he only managed 10.5 minutes a game, but in his second season, his playing time increased significantly and he was even ranked 13th in the league for three-point field-goal percentage. Nevertheless, the Canadian's tenure with the Suns was not to last. While at Santa Clara, Nash had met and befriended Dallas Mavericks assistant coach Donnie Nelson, who worked for the Golden State Warriors at that time. After moving to Dallas, Nelson was able to convince his father, Don Nelson—then the Mavericks coach and general manager—to acquire the under-utilized Nash. Following the 1998 NBA Draft, Nash was traded from the Suns to the Mavericks in exchange for Martin Muursepp, Bubba Wells, the draft rights to Pat Garrity and a first-round draft pick. Dallas It was in Dallas that Nash established himself as one of the best point guards in the NBA. During his first year as a Maverick (the lockout-shortened 1998–99 season) he started in all 40 games he played in, and averaged 7.9 points, 2.9 rebounds and 5.5 assists per game.Steve Nash Info Page - Career Stats and Totals, nba.com, accessed 22 September 2007. The Mavericks failed to make the playoffs but in the 1999–2000 season, the team's prospects improved considerably. Nash missed 25 mid-season games due to an ankle injury, but came back to record six double-doubles in the last month of play. He finished the season with averages of 8.6 points and 4.9 assists per game. More importantly for the team, second-year teammate and friend Dirk Nowitzki was blossoming quickly into a top player, veteran Michael Finley was having an All-Star-calibre year, and the team's new owner, billionaire Mark Cuban, was bringing new energy and excitement to the franchise. Nash now had a supportive environment in which he could thrive. In the 2000–01 season, Nash averaged 15.6 points and 7.3 assists per game in a breakout season. With Nash directing the team's offence, Nowitzki and Finley playing at their best, and the acquisition of All-Star Juwan Howard complementing the high-scoring trio, the Mavericks earned a playoff berth for the first time in more than a decade. Dallas lost in the Western Conference Semifinals four games to one to the San Antonio Spurs, but it marked the beginning of a memorable run for Nash and the Mavericks.Associated Press. Say Hello to Hollywood, nba.com, 14 May 2001, accessed 22 September 2007. In the 2001–02 season, Nash posted career-highs of 17.9 points and 7.7 assists per game and earned a spot in the NBA All-Star Game and on the All-NBA Third Team.Steve Nash, basketball-reference.com, accessed 22 September 2007.Postseason Awards - 2001-02, nba.com/history, accessed 22 September 2007. He was now an All-Star, increasingly appearing in television commercials and, with Finley and Nowitzki, a part of the Dallas Mavericks "Big Three."2001-2002 Dallas Mavericks Big Three, allposters.com, accessed 12 January 2008. Dallas earned another trip to the playoffs but lost again in the Semifinals to the Sacramento Kings four games to one.Ticker. Sacramento Stampedes Into Conference Finals, nba.com, 13 May 2002, accessed 22 September 2007. Nash closely replicated his previous season's performance in the 2002–03 season, averaging 17.7 points and 7.3 assists per game, again earning All-Star and All-NBA Third Team honours.Postseason Awards - 2002-03, nba.com/history, accessed 22 September 2007. Nowitzki and Nash led the Mavericks from a 14-game winning streak to open the season all the way to the Western Conference Finals, where they lost to the eventual NBA champions, the San Antonio Spurs four games to two.Ticker. Kerr Spurs San Antonio to Finals, nba.com, 29 May 2003, accessed 22 September 2007. It was only the second Conference Finals appearance in the franchise's history. The 2003–04 season saw an offensively boosted Mavericks roster (with the acquisitions of Antoine Walker and Antawn Jamison) but a dip in Nash's scoring contributions. As a result he was not selected for the All-Star and All-NBA team rosters even though he achieved new career highs in assists per game (8.8) and free-throw accuracy (91.6%). In the playoffs, the fifth-seeded Dallas failed to make progress yet again as the Sacramento Kings saw them off four games to one.Ticker. Kings Dismiss Mavericks, nba.com, 29 April 2004, accessed 22 September 2007. After the 2003–04 season, Nash became a free agent and attempted to negotiate a long-term contract with Cuban. Cuban wanted to build his franchise around the younger Nowitzki and did not want to risk signing the aging Nash to a long-term deal, and offered Nash a four-year deal worth about $9 million annually, with a fifth year partially guaranteed. The Phoenix Suns on the other hand offered the point guard a six-year, $63 million contract. Nash was reluctant to leave Dallas and returned to Cuban to see if he would match the deal; Cuban did not, and Nash signed for the Suns for 2004–05 season. The Canadian would go on to win two League MVP awards with Phoenix, and on a 14 June 2006 appearance on The Late Show with David Letterman, Cuban wondered out loud, "... you know Steve's a great guy and I love him to death, but why couldn't he play like an MVP for us?"Carlton, Chuck, "Cuban takes his act to Letterman", Dallas Morning News, 15 June 2006, accessed 22 September 2007. Return to Phoenix Nash joined a Suns team which had emerging young players in Shawn Marion, Joe Johnson and Amar'e Stoudemire. In the season before Nash arrived, the Suns had recorded a 29–53 win–loss record, and they were projected to have another poor season. Head coach Mike D'Antoni favoured an up-tempo style of basketball; this required smaller and more athletic players with the capability to outrun and outshoot their opponents. Nash's familiarity with this style combined with the athleticism of his teammates produced an NBA-best 62–20 record and a points-per-game average of 110.4, the highest in a decade.Faye, Brad and Greene, Josh, "Back On The Right Track", nba.com/suns, accessed 10 December 2007. The catalyst of this turnaround, Nash averaged 11.5 assists per game while making 50.2% of his field goals and 43.1% of his three-pointers in the regular season.Kalb, Elliot, "On the Rise?", nba.com, accessed 7 May 2008. He edged Shaquille O'Neal to win the 2004–05 NBA MVP award,Steve Nash Named 2004-05 NBA MVP, nba.com, 8 May 2005, accessed 26 September 2007. becoming the first Canadian to earn the honour, as well as the third point guard ever to be named MVP, along with Magic Johnson and Bob Cousy. In the playoffs, Phoenix swept the Memphis Grizzlies in four games before meeting the Dallas Mavericks in the second round.At a Glance, nba.com/playoffs2005, accessed 17 November 2007. Nash led the Suns to a 4–2 series win, and the Suns reached the Western Conference finals for the first time since 1993, but lost to the eventual NBA Champions, the San Antonio Spurs, in five games. The next season, Stoudemire suffered a serious knee injury, and Johnson and Quentin Richardson were traded away.Faye, Brad and Greene, Josh, "Another SUN-believable Season", nba.com/suns, accessed 10 December 2007. The Suns were not expected to repeat their successful 2005 season, but with Nash directing the same high-tempo offence, the team compiled a respectable 54–28 record and won the division title. The Suns were again the highest-scoring team in the league with seven players averaging double figures in points per game, and Nash was voted for the first time to start for the 2006 Western All-Star team.2006 NBA Western Conference All-Stars, nba.com, accessed 29 December 2007. Having recorded career highs in points (18.8), rebounds (4.2), field goal percentage (.512) and free-throw percentage (a league-leading .921), and leading the league with 10.5 assists per game, Nash was named the league MVP for the second year in a row.Suns’ Steve Nash Wins Second Consecutive MVP Award, nba.com, 7 May 2006, accessed 26 September 2007. In the first round of the playoffs, Phoenix overcame a 3–1 deficit against the Los Angeles Lakers and won the series 4–3. The Los Angeles Clippers were their Conference Semifinals opponents, and the Suns again needed seven games to clinch the series. For the second year in a row however, the Suns bowed out in the Conference Finals, this time to Nash's former team, Dallas. In the 2006–07 season, Nash had another stellar campaign, averaging 18.6 points and a career-high 11.6 assists per game while becoming the first person since Magic Johnson in 1990–91 to average 18 points and 11 assists per game during the regular season.Bryant, Nowitzki, Duncan also part of All-NBA team, sports.espn.go.com, 14 May 2007, accessed 16 October 2007. Nash received the most votes for first-team All-NBA and was joined by teammate Stoudemire; the two were the first teammates to make the first team since Kobe Bryant and Shaquille O'Neal in 2003–04. Nash received 129 first-place votes and 645 total points from the panel of 129 media members. He narrowly missed being MVP a third consecutive time, coming in second with 44 first place votes to 83 for Dirk Nowitzki."Dirk Nowitzki Wins 2006-07 MVP Award", nba.com. accessed 16 October 2007. In the playoffs, the Suns eliminated the Lakers in five games, but were unable to overcome the Spurs in the Conference Semifinals, losing the series 4–2.At a Glance 2007, nba.com, accessed 29 December 2007. Nash played in 81 regular-season games during the 2007–08 season; in this campaign, the Western Conference was especially competitive and he led the Suns to 55 wins and the sixth seed for the 2008 NBA Playoffs. Although there was a dip in his regular-season output, Nash's shooting remained sharp; the accuracy of his shooting was on par with his 2005–06 MVP campaign (shooting at least 50% from the field, 40% from the three-point arc, and 90% from the free throw line). On 31 January 2008, he collected his All-Star stripes for the sixth time in his career.Two Hometown Hornets Named as Reserves for 2008 NBA All-Star Game, nba.com, 31 January 2008, accessed 1 February 2008. However, Nash continued to experience agony in the playoffs. Despite a mid-season trade that sent Shawn Marion to the Miami Heat and brought four-time NBA champion Shaquille O'Neal to the team, the Suns were defeated in the first round of the playoffs by the San Antonio Spurs for the third time in four years.Spurs KO Rattled Suns to Close Out Series, nba.com, 30 April 2008, accessed 1 May 2008. In the deciding Game 5, Nash was perceived to have suffered from "elimination-game jitters", and turned over the ball twice in the final two minutes of what was a tight contest. Nevertheless, Nash was later named to the All-NBA Second Team for the 2007–08 season.MVP Kobe Bryant Highlights All-NBA First Team, nba.com, 8 May 2008, accessed 9 May 2008. International career In 1993, while in college, Nash played for the national team and competed in the Canada Games and World University Games. He won a bronze medal at the Canada Games and won a silver medal at the World University Games, losing to Team USA, which included players such as Michael Finley and Damon Stoudamire. Nash captained Canada at the Sydney Olympics in 2000.Hoser makes hoops history, again, cbc.ca, 8 May 2006, accessed 26 September 2007. He led Canada to win their round robin group with a victory over Spain and a stunning 83–75 win over favoured Yugoslavia when he scored 26 points with eight rebounds and eight assists. Canada was eliminated in the quarterfinals with a loss to France and Nash left the court in tears. Nash expressed disappointment with the result, saying "It hurts a lot. I feel like I let everybody down. We could have been in the championship game. We were good enough."Daniels, Craig, "Nash lays the groundwork", canoe.ca, 29 September 2000, accessed 30 September 2007. Nevertheless, he did see a possible silver lining, saying "Hopefully kids Canada will be inspired to play—that's what I really hope." A victory in its final game of the tournament, a placement game against Russia, enabled Canada to salvage 7th place. Nash's Olympic performance propelled him to stardom in Canada and he finished fifth in voting for the 2000 Lionel Conacher Award, which is handed out to the Canadian male athlete of the year.Weir named Canadian male athlete of the year, cbc.ca, 28 December 2000, accessed 8 December 2007. Nash again led Team Canada during qualifying for the 2004 Summer Olympics at the Americas Olympic Qualifying Tournament in San Juan, Puerto Rico. He was named tournament MVP,USA Basketball wins Olympic Qualifying gold, insidehoops.com, 1 September 2003, accessed 26 September 2007. but Canada finished fourth, missing out on the three Olympic spots available. That was the last time Nash played for Canada. In December 2007, he said, "In my mind right now, I'm not going to play for Canada any more."Arthur, Bruce, "Nash era at an end for Canada", nationalpost.com, 4 December 2007, accessed 11 December 2007. Player profile Nash is most noted for his playmaking, ball-handling skills and shooting. He led the league in assists for three years, averaging 11.5 assists per game in 2004–05, 10.5 in 2005–06 and 11.6 in 2006–07, and won the 2005 NBA All-Star Skills Contest. As at the end of 2007–08 season, he has an 89.7% free-throw shooting average (third-best in NBA history),NBA History - All Time Leaders: Free Throw Percentage, nba.com, accessed 1 May 2008. a 43.1% career three-point shooting average (fifth-best in league history),NBA History - All Time Leaders: Three Point Field Goal Percentage, nba.com, accessed 1 May 2008. and his total assists, assists per game, and three-point field goals made rank him as one of the top 20 players in league history.NBA History - All Time Leaders: Assists, nba.com, accessed 1 May 2008.NBA History - All Time Leaders: Assists Per Game, nba.com, accessed 1 May 2008.NBA History - All Time Leaders: Three Point Field Goals Made, nba.com, accessed 8 May 2008. In the 2005–06 season, Nash became the fourth player in NBA history to shoot better than 50% from the field, 40% from three-point range (43.9), and 90% from the line, joining Larry Bird, Reggie Miller and Mark Price; this was a feat he would repeat two seasons later in the 2007–08 campaign. A two-time NBA MVP, Nash is only the second point guard (along with Magic Johnson) to win the MVP award multiple times and the third guard in NBA history to earn back-to-back MVPs (joining Johnson and Michael Jordan). Only eight other NBA players have won back-to-back MVP awards: Johnson, Jordan, Bill Russell, Wilt Chamberlain, Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, Moses Malone, Larry Bird, and Tim Duncan. On 11 May 2006, ESPN.com rated Nash as the 9th-best point guard of all time,"10 greatest point guards ever", sports.espn.go.com, 11 May 2006, accessed 25 September 2007. and in a survey by nba.com in 2007, Nash received 85% of the votes by the league's general managers as best point guard in the league.GMs tip Bargnani for big year, thestar.com, 25 October 2007, accessed 26 October 2007. Commenting on Nash losing out to former teammate Dirk Nowitzki for the 2007 NBA MVP, Boston Celtics centre and Hall Of Famer Russell stated: "I think, on the world stage, he's one of our great athletes in all sports... I'm a big fan. The two MVPs he got, he deserved. Part of the reason that he's so good and so effective is that the guys like playing with him. He creates an atmosphere where they win games."Russell on Nash, iht.com, 5 July 2007, accessed 16 October 2007. In terms of specific skills, Nash is particularly effective playing the pick and roll, notably with Nowitzki when he was at Dallas and later with the Suns' Amare Stoudemire and Shawn Marion.Pelton, Kevin, "Every Play Counts: The Phoenix Pick-and-Roll", 82games.com, 5 December 2005, accessed 14 September 2007. When Nash returned to Phoenix in 2004, he helped the Suns improve from a 29–53 record in 2003–04 to 62–20 in 2004–05, reaching the Conference Finals for the first time in 11 years, earning him his first MVP award. The next season, he led the Suns into the Conference Finals, despite the injuries of all three big men (Stoudemire, Kurt Thomas and Brian Grant); further, Nash was responsible for seven of his teammates attaining career-highs in season scoring. Gallery Steve Nash.jpg References External links * NBA.com profile * Basketball-Reference.com: Steve Nash * Canada Basketball profile * Category:National Basketball Association players Category:South African basketball players Category:Canadian basketball players Category:Point Guards Category:Phoenix Suns players Category:Former Dallas Mavericks players Category:Players drafted in 1996 Category:Santa Clara Alumni Category:List of NBA Players Category:Players who wear/wore number 13 Category:Born in 1974 Category:NBA Most Valuable Player Award Winners Category:Basketball players at the 2000 Summer Olympics